NFL Week 5 Overview

If for no other reason, week five went pretty well (unless you're Jacksonville, Philly, Carolina, Atlanta or the Jets). There were some pretty exciting games last week and some that were so bad not even novacaine could take the pain away. The so-called "Dream Team" was a nightmare in Buffalo last week and the Falcons blew an 8-point lead against the defending Super Bowl champions at home. Meanwhile, the upstart Detroit Lions shocked the world by winning their first Monday Night Football game since the Clinton administration.

New England managed to restore some order in their rivalry with the New York Jets and Denver may have solved their QB problems for the time being. With six teams having a bye week last week, there were fewer games played, which meant that the home team didn't do very well against the odds. Of the 13 games played, 6 home teams were winners, while 11 of the 13 games covered their point spread.

The largest point spread? The Giants, who were a 10 point favorite against Seattle. The smallest spread was Jacksonville, a 1-point favorite against Seattle. The largest over/under was 53 (Green Bay at Atlanta) and the smallest was 37 (Cincinnati at Jacksonville). Here's a look at last week's odds. Baltimore, Cleveland, Dallas, Miami, St. Louis and Washington had byes last week, in case you're wondering or forgot.

Week 5 (Byes: Baltimore, Cleveland, Dallas, Miami, St. Louis and Washington)
Sunday, October 9                      Pts.    Diff.  Favorite                 O/U      Cover?
Green Bay 25, ATLANTA 14               39      -11    Green Bay + 5            53         Y
New Orleans 30, CAROLINA 27            57      - 3    New Orleans + 6 1/2      51 1/2     N
BUFFALO 31, Philadelphia 24            55      - 7    Philadelphia + 3         50         Y
Seattle 36, NEW YORKk GIANTS 25        61      -11    NEW YORK GIANTS + 10     43 1/2     Y
Cincinnati 30, JACKSONVILLE 20         50      -10    JACKSONVILLE + 1         37         Y
Kansas City 28, INDIANAPOLIS 24        52      - 4    INDIANAPOLIS + 1 1/2     38 1/2     Y
PITTSBURGH 38, Tennessee 17            55      -21    PITTSBURGH + 3 1/2       40         Y
MINNESOTA 34, Arizona 10               44      -24    MINNESOTA + 3            45 1/2     Y  
Oakland 25, HOUSTON 20                 45      - 5    HOUSTON + 6              48 1/2     N
SAN FRANCISCO 48, Tampa Bay 3          51      -45    SAN FRANCISCO + 2 1/2    41 1/2     Y
NEW ENGLAND 30, New York Jets 21       51      - 9    NEW ENGLAND + 7 1/2      48 1/2     Y
San Diego 29, DENVER 24                53      - 5    San Diego + 4            46         Y

Monday, October 10                     Pts.    Diff.  Favorite                 O/U      Cover?
DETROIT 24, Chicago 13                 37      -11    DETROIT + 5 1/2          47 1/2     Y

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